The present invention relates generally to golf club heads and methods of making such heads, and is particularly concerned with golf club heads having peripheral weighting and methods of weighting such heads.
Various techniques have been proposed in the past for weighting golf club heads at the perimeter and elsewhere, to produce improved ball striking properties and enhance performance. Such techniques may be applied to any type of golf club, such as woods, irons, and putters. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,312,106 of Cook, for example, a borehole is formed in the club head parallel to the striking face and to the ground at the instant of striking the ball, and the borehole is partially filled with tungsten powder to create a "sweet line" for ideal striking of the ball.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,540,437 of Bamber describes a perimeter weighted golf club in which a weighted perimeter portion of the club head is secured to the hitting surface by a spacer so that the weighted portion can be disposed further outward from the hitting surface. In one version, the club head has a tubular portion or frame which is much lighter in weight than the solid metal frame of perimeter weighted golf clubs. A weighted portion outboard of the tubular frame may be secured to the tubular frame by spacers. Alternatively, the outer wall of the tubular frame may be made thicker than the inner wall to provide desired peripheral weighting.